On Tuesday night, the New Jersey Devils took on the Carolina Hurricanes in game 5 of their best of 7 game set (CAR up 3-1). The Devils came out hot, scoring 3 goals in the first period for the first time in the playoffs. It seemed too good to be true. It was. Just minutes into the 2nd period Carolina scored two goals and immediately changed the course of the game. They would eventually tie it up later in the period. The Devils were not done yet. They answered back almost instantly to the Canes tying goal. At the end of the second period the Devils found themselves in a hole with a 5 on 3. Carolina took advantage of the Devils weakness and scored, making it 4-4. The teams spent the rest of the game knotted up, meaning overtime was necessary. The first overtime saw no goals, but in the second, the Canes took advantage again of the Devils on the power play, and Sebastian Aho scored. A heartbreaking end to a tough season. I would like to acknowledge Nico Hischier and Jacob Markstrom as the two MVPs for the Devils. They played hard and left it all out there. Truth is, the Devils had no chance at winning the cup without All-Star Jack Hughes and his brother Luke, among many other injuries.
What’s next for the Devils? A lot of moves need to be made. Firstoff, they need to totally rebuild their bottom 6 forwards. Nate Batian, Tomas Tatar, Curtis Lazar, Ondrej Palat, and Dawson Mercer need to go. The defense, on the other hand, is the strongpoint of this team. Seamus Casey and Simon Nemec are young stars who I believe shouldnt be moved unless Quinn Hughes is in the conversation. Some potential free agent players I believe the Devils should pursue are Brock Boeser, Sam Bennett, Kyle Palmieri, Christian Dvorak, and Reilly Smith. All 5 of these players bring the offensive talent the Devils lacked to get over the hump this year. Quinn Hughes, as mentioned before, will be an interesting story to monitor as the offseason goes by. Quinn is one of the best defensemen in the NHL, being a finalist for the Norris Trophy as the league’s best defenseman. Quinn has said that he wants to play with his brothers in Jersey, with his contract being up in two years. The question will be whether the Canucks want to trade Hughes now or wait two years for his contract to be up. Realistically, a trade package for Hughes to the Devils could be Dawson Mercer, Ondrej Palat, Seamus Casey, Simon Nemec, and a bunch of picks. Getting Quinn Hughes would be cinema. 
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